Newsbrief: Today, Chinese game developer and operator The9 announced that Chinese media company Shanghai Oriental Pearl Culture Development Co., Ltd. has purchased a 20.01 percent stake in its U.S.-based studio Red 5 in a deal valued at $23 million.

Red 5 is the developer of the free-to-play MMO shooter Firefall. The9 bought a majority stake in the studio for $20 million in 2010.

Acting CEO James Macauley said in a statement that this investment "will offer us the means to execute on our plan for successfully launching Firefall in 2014." The game is currently in open beta.